Yale School of Forestry & Environmental Studies

Kroon Hall

Concept > Overview

A New Home for F&ES
Since the founding of the Yale School of Forestry and Environmental Studies in 1901, the School has grown from the first professional forestry program in the U.S. to a leading institution for the study of the environment. As academic programs and research initiatives have expanded, and the community of students, faculty and staff grown, F&ES activities have spread across eight buildings in the Science Hill section of the Yale campus.

A Building that Reflects the School’s Values
Kroon Hall is Yale’s greenest building and a symbol of the School’s ideals and values in built form. To create this inspirational and instructional model of sustainable design, F&ES brought together the some of the world’s leading architects and engineers: Hopkins Architects, Centerbrook Architects and Planners, ARUP, Atelier Ten, and Olin Partnership. The U.S. Green Building Council awarded Kroon Hall LEED (Leadership in Energy and Environmental Design) Platinum certification in February 2010. The building was awarded 59 points—7 more than required for the top rating of Platinum status.

The Context of Kroon
Some of the most innovative elements of the Kroon Hall project are actually outside the building.

Courtyards on the north and south sides of the building are landscaped with 25 native species and have created a community on Science Hill by linking Kroon to Kline Biology Tower, Osborn Memorial Laboratories, Sage Hall and Sloan Physics Laboratory. The south courtyard is a green roof and includes Mars Pond, where water from the building's roof and grounds is cleansed by aquatic plants. The grey water is pumped into the building, where it used for toilets. Underneath the courtyard is a service node, where trash and recyclables are picked up and deliveries made for several buildings on Science Hill. Kroon Hall serves as an anchor for the ongoing revitalization of Science Hill and green construction efforts across the Yale campus.